Taiwan’s government has been lauded for its swift and effective pandemic response. The democratic island nation of 24 million people has reported 942 cases to date, including nine deaths, since the beginning of the outbreak. More than a year on from its first confirmed case on January 21, 2020—a resident who had returned from Wuhan the day before—the conversation has now shifted to any upcoming immunization program. The administration of President Tsai Ing-wen has managed to secure 20 million vaccines, with another 25 doses in the pipeline, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control has said....

On ’ Big Ideas, Bright Stars ’ : “Michelle Rhee is doing exactly what students need, not just in D.C. but in many inner-city public schools. If we don’t demand more from supervisors and teachers, how can we demand more from students?” Darian Weaver, Freeport, N.Y. A Changing China In “Mao To Now” (Dec. 31/Jan. 7), Melinda Liu paints a masterful picture of China, but what isn’t said is as telling as what is....

In an 18-minute virtual address at the Boao Forum for Asia, a four-day event hosted from the Hainan province in southern China, Xi warned against “unilateralism” and said rules should not be set by “one or a few countries.” More than 4,000 Chinese officials and businesspeople were expected to physically attend Boao—China’s response to the World Economic Forum in Davos—and high-profile guests including Apple’s Tim Cook and Tesla’s Elon Musk were also on the bill, China Daily reports....

Trump said Monday on Twitter that “China’s 2nd Quarter growth is the slowest it has been in more than 27 years,” touting his 25 percent tariffs on some $250 billion worth of Chinese goods as “having a major effect on companies wanting to leave China for non-tariffed countries.” “This is why China wants to make a deal with the U.S., and wishes it had not broken the original deal in the first place,” the president tweeted....

Biden was speaking in Iowa on Tuesday when he used the word for the first time, describing his Russian opposite number as a dictator who “declares war and commits genocide half a world away.” The American president later said the pointed declaration, which carriers implications in international law, was deliberate. Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said Beijing was aware of Biden’s charged remarks, but his brief response suggested Beijing would remain noncommittal about the Kremlin’s actions, 46 days into the invasion of Ukraine....

Pelosi’s heavily anticipated visit sent the stock market into its largest plunge in more than two months as investors reacted to escalated tensions between the United States and China, Reuters reported. The trip has inflamed relations between the two countries as China has made threats over the trip. Taiwan is an island located about 80 miles off the coast of mainland China that has been governed independently since 1949. It has long been a point of contention between China and the United States, as China claims it as its own territory, but Taiwanese authorities say they are an independent nation....

Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Tan Kefei said Washington, D.C. had taken a “covert approach” to its handling of the incident involving USS Connecticut—one of three Seawolf-class nuclear-powered boats operated by the U.S. Navy—which collided with a mysterious underwater object on October 2. The U.S. Pacific Fleet confirmed the incident via a statement six days later, saying no sailors were seriously injured and that the ship was headed for repairs in Guam....

In the pick of the group’s action, all eyes will fall on the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Tshwane as the tournament’s defending champions, Wydad Casablanca will come up against former champions Mamelodi Sundowns. The game has all the makings of an instant thriller considering the recent history between the two sides. Last season it was the Moroccan giants who knocked out Sundowns, who were the then reigning champions in the quarterfinals, before eventually going on to record their second Champions League triumph in their history....

Antonio Conte decided to allow the 29-year-old Serbia international to join their Premier League rivals for a fee in the region of £40 million, with Matic having been deemed surplus to requirements. Morata upped to 10/1 for Golden Boot The champions still have N’Golo Kante and have also signed Tiemoue Bakayoko from Monaco in the summer transfer window, but Cahill thinks the club will feel the loss of former Benfica midfielder Matic....

Former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez has joined the Mexican wrestling promotion AAA and will perform at its biggest annual event, Triplemania XXVII, on Aug. 3 in Mexico City. Velasquez was introduced Tuesday at a press conference in Mexico City. “I will be an in-ring performer for sure," Velasquez said in a statement sent to MMA Fighting. “With more time learning this beautiful sport, great things will happen.” A match for Velasquez wasn’t announced, but one was teased MORE: Join DAZN and watch more than 100 fight nights a year...

Jenner played a round of golf with Matt Lauer of the TODAY show and explained she had some initial anxiety over her the transition. MORE: Jenner at the ESPYs | Jenner’s Olympic torch makes nearly $24,000 at auction “I had a massive panic attack,” Jenner told Lauer. “I’d never had anything like that in my life. It was, like, so scary. My heart was just pounding and this and that....

Barbour, attending the NCAA women's basketball Stanford Regional, confirmed Sunday they would meet in Berkeley to discuss the future. PHOTOS: Best shots from the Elite Eight | Updated bracket The Golden Bears lost Wednesday in the quarterfinal round of the NIT, 67-65 to SMU, to finish an up-and-down season at 21-14. The 67-year-old Montgomery, who coached Stanford for 18 years then two disappointing seasons as head coach of the NBA's Golden State Warriors, has a 677-317 overall record in 32 years in college....

Not just in how it’s run, but literally: The era of the transfer portal has made it to where college teams are constantly shuffling and reshuffling with players looking for greener pastures. That is the case again ahead of the 2022 season, which features perhaps the greatest number of big-time players leaving for the transfer portal. Chief among them: Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams and Pitt wide receiver Jordan Addison, who will both team up and play together under Lincoln Riley (himself a transfer of sorts) at USC....

Arsenal injuries, suspensions and line-up vs Chelsea The Bayer Leverkusen midfielder had originally signed a contract with Trabzonspor when he was 17, agreeing to play for them from the 2012-13 season onwards. The offence relates to when the attacking midfielder agreed to sign for the Turkish side before opting instead to extend his contract with German club Karlsruher SC. Trabzonspor reportedly payed Calhanoglu and his agent a sum of €100,000 when they put pen to paper in 2011....

Under the plan, those in the following categories qualify to receive the $600 payment: Those receiving a CalEITC (California Earned Income Tax Credit) for 2020Households with individual Tax Identification Numbers (ITINs) and an income below $75,000Households enrolled in the CalWORKS programRecipients of Supplemental Security Income/State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP)Recipients of aid through the Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI) The governor’s office noted: “ITIN taxpayers who also qualify for the California EITC would receive a total of $1,200....

The girl, who was not identified, was rushed to the hospital and needed 180 stitches to her face after the attack in the backyard of a house in Hemet, southern California, last weekend. She received additional stitches on her hip, but has since been released from the hospital, Fox11 reported. The two-year-old male pit bull mix was tied up at the time of the attack. Authorities are certain the dog would have killed the toddler had it been loose, Lesley Huennekens of Animal Services told Fox11....

Aside from the three facing deportation, Newsom also pardoned John DiFrenna, who was given probation for, after being charged with drug possession with intent to sell in 1990. DiFrenna received a certificate of rehabilitation in 1990 from a Superior Court of California in 2018, according to The Sacramento Bee. Deportation efforts against Southeast Asian immigrants have increased under President Donald Trump. According to The Sacramento Bee, ICE reported 110 people deported to Cambodia in 2018, a significant jump from 29 people in 2017....

“The state already requires that students are vaccinated against viruses that cause measles, mumps, and rubella—there’s no reason why we wouldn’t do the same for COVID-19,” Governor Gavin Newsom said in a press release. “Today’s measure, just like our first-in-the-nation school masking and staff vaccination requirements, is about protecting our children and school staff, and keeping them in the classroom.” California currently has the lowest COVID-19 case rate in the country....

That’s the impression you might have of California from the headlines. “People are leaving California at record rates,” said one. “Why Are So Many People Leaving The Golden State?” said another. “Is Silicon Valley losing its shine?” asked a third. But then there’s this from a recent Bloomberg opinion piece: “California Defies Doom With No. 1 U.S. Economy.” So what’s going on? As the late New York Senator Daniel Moynihan famously said, “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not to their own facts....

The encounter between the man and the couple occurred on January 8 but was reported by the Fairfield Police Department on January 14. According to FOX40 News in California, the husband, Fred Farrell, noticed the intruder walking toward his home while he was working in his garage. Farrell and his wife, who was inside the house at the time, then saw that the man had removed his pants and was mooning them....